


Just Knock.

by risingscribe



Category: Fruits Basket, Fruits Basket - Takaya Natsuki (Manga)
Genre: Anxiety, Other, Panic Attack, friendship fic, honda tohru/rin sohma brotp
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-20
Updated: 2019-07-20
Packaged: 2020-07-09 04:14:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 767
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19881454
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/risingscribe/pseuds/risingscribe
Summary: In which Rin attempts to visit Tohru.





	Just Knock.

**Author's Note:**

> Just a quick little friendship scene I had bumbling around in my head. I'm trying to write again.

Rin had decided a long time ago that the concept of _friends_ wasn’t something she would ever dabble in. Despite the best efforts of some people (Kagura), she previously had absolutely no intention of crossing that boundary. It was too risky and unnecessary. Even after getting closer to Haru, it wasn’t something she was curious about or ever planned to invest in. But even if she had known one day she would change her mind, the bright and soft brunette, whose door she was currently outside of, would have _never_ been on her list of potential candidates. It made absolutely no sense. And yet, here she stood.  
  
Where she had _been_ standing, hand frozen in knocking position, for what felt like eternity, but also probably ten minutes.

Tohru was expecting her. She wasn’t intruding. Tohru _wanted_ her here. Even if she wasn’t expecting her, Tohru would likely spontaneously combust before she ever turned her away. Tohru wanted to see her. Tohru _always_ wanted to see her. She knew that. She knew that. She _knew_ that, but the tightness in her chest would not subside no matter what she told herself.

All she had to do was knock.

All. She. Had. To. Do. Was. _Knock_.

She huffed a deep breath and dropped her hand, fists clenched so tight her nails might have made her bleed. Why couldn’t she just _knock?_ Tohru had called _her_ to ask her to come along when Haru visited to see Kyo’s dojo, and she had agreed. When they arrived, Haru went ahead to see Kyo while she was supposed to stay here and greet Tohru since she had no interest in the dojo anyway. Tohru was waiting for her. They had all planned it. _Tohru_ herself had asked. Tohru _wanted_ to see her.

_But did she?_ She stumbled back. The cruel voice had come out of nowhere. _Did anyone?_ A spike of hot, tight pain slammed into her chest. _Aren’t you just forcing her to care?_ She bit her lip, her breathing erratic. _Isn’t she just pretending? Don’t they all?_ A cry, hard and throbbing, tried to jam itself in her throat, but she barely stifled it. _Why do you keep making them? Leave them alone. Leave them ALONE!_

Rin whipped around on her heel, just narrowly catching herself from falling into the colorful, lively flowers that Tohru had likely planted. She couldn’t do it. She needed Haru. Haru would knock. Or rather, Haru would be with Kyo, and no one would have to knock. Kyo could just open the door. She could step inside if Haru was here. She would just wander until she found the dojo. After she remembered how to breathe again.

How did that go? In and out, in and out, in and out. Her vision started to blur. _No. Not again._ In and out. In. And. Out. _In. And –_

“Isuzu-san?”

And just like that, her lungs accepted air again. She turned her head to see Tohru behind her. She was dressed in a pastel pink shirt and white skirt, with an apron tied around her waist, and concern tied to the kind features on her face. It was picturesque. She knew she shouldn’t belong here.

“What’s wrong, Isuzu-san? Are you sick?” she called again, the concern on her face growing.

She should answer. “No,” Rin barely choked out. “I couldn’t knock.”

She watched the concern fade to a confused frown. _That made no sense_ , Rin thought, _why did I say that?_ She prepared to turn away from her and leave right as Tohru’s face took on a new expression – new, but one she knew well. It was tender, kind, welcoming.

She reached out her hand and grasped Rin’s in a gentle, but firm hold, and smiled. “That’s okay. You can knock next time.”

Yeah, Rin knew she didn’t belong here.

But… Tohru had never been concerned about that, had she?

She let her friend lead her inside, silently willing the tears to go back where they came from. _That’s right,_ she realized, _she could knock next time._ She almost smiled.

~

Haru, from only a few feet away, but just outside of sight, didn’t hide his smile at all. He had wondered if she would be able to do it, and had stayed to watch just in case. He fully believed she would definitely knock next time.

Now it was off to the dojo. He was suddenly energized and ready to kick some orange haired ass in front of his own students. The only problem was he lost the directions… _Ah, who needs those?_ He’d get there eventually.

Probably.


End file.
